


(no) talking in the library

by 26stars



Series: AU August 2020 [12]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Depression, Gen, Library AU, Mention of Andrew, Young (not Kid) Skye, mental health
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-14
Updated: 2020-08-14
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:08:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25896493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/26stars/pseuds/26stars
Summary: AU August Day 14: Library AU+MayDaisy+ these prompts:“There's no one in the library except you me and, oh, that couple loudly making out in the stacks”+ “I’m a librarian and I see you have a bunch of books about depression and suicide in your hand, hey buddy, want to talk to someone? I’m here if you need me”Platonic MaySkye, Pre-canon era AU
Relationships: Melinda May & Skye | Daisy Johnson
Series: AU August 2020 [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1860802
Comments: 21
Kudos: 93
Collections: AOS AU August 2020, Women of the MCU





	(no) talking in the library

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Florchis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Florchis/gifts).



Melinda had always felt that Monday nights were the best nights to be at the library.

Most people who had the desire to visit a library at all had been there already over the weekend. The seniors were already home for dinner, the young children who had come with moms during the day were gone, and hardly any students of any age were motivated enough to go to a public library on a Monday. Melinda got to pass the afternoon doing the paperwork from the weekend, and then re-shelving was usually quick work, so she had the evening to just sit and read herself, interrupted only by the few patrons who needed to check out books.

Tonight, she was in the final chapter of her novel when a sound that was both familiar and unwelcome drifts towards her desk from the far side of the library, where the non-fiction stacks are.

_Really? There’s really nowhere else you could be doing that? Not even a car?_

She glances up around the reading area to see if any of the other patrons have noticed. There is exactly one other person in sight, a young woman, maybe college-aged or a little younger, sitting at a table with a stack of books at her elbow. She is looking in the direction of the sounds too, and, as if sensing Melinda’s gaze, glances her way with a concerned expression.

Melinda holds her gaze briefly and makes a _yeah, I got you_ face, then heaves a sigh and gets to her feet and heads towards the stacks.

She finds the teenaged couple in the last row, the girl pressed up against a shelf while the boy seems to be doing his best to lift her off the ground. At least both of them still have their pants up, which is better than the last time this happened.

Melinda barely raises her voice. This is a library, after all.

“Take it outside. Right now.”

The pair break apart immediately, both blushing but also dissolving into grins and giggles, as if they were expecting this to happen. They don’t apologize, don’t say anything to Melinda, just grab hands and rush towards the library entrance. Melinda follows them at a leisurely pace, not really that angry, and waits until they’re all the way out the door to sit back down at the check-out desk again. The young woman at the reading table catches her eye with a knowing smile, and Melinda gives her a shrug and a roll of her eyes before picking up her book again.

When closing time rolls around, the young woman seems aware of the hour without Melinda informing her that she needs to start packing up. She isn’t checking out any of the books she’d pulled, so Melinda points out a re-shelving cart for her to use.

“Do all librarians have super-hearing? I get the impression you’ve had to do that before,” the girl comments as she packs up her bag while Melinda does the same behind her desk.

“I don’t know about super-hearing,” Melinda says, “but you always get used to the sound environment of a place and have the ability to pick out abnormal sounds. Tonight was the fourth time that’s happened on one of my shifts.”

“It’s not the same people every time, right?” the girl asks, barely smiling. “I’d think you’d ban people after a certain point.”

Melinda shakes her head. “No, it’s never been the same couple twice. Though I don’t know what experiences my colleagues have had.”

The young woman finishes stacking the books she was reading on a cart and moves towards the door. “Hope that’s your last time, anyway. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” Melinda calls as the automatic doors close after her. She locks the door, then moves back through the library doing her closing duties—pushing in chairs, closing the blinds, etc. She checks the spines of the books the woman had just put on the cart and notices they’re all from the same non-fiction shelf—the psychology section.

They’re all books about depression.

 _Oh_.

Melinda doesn’t need to assume anything—it’s her job as a librarian to point people in the direction they want to go, not steer them where she thinks they should be. So she re-shelves the books and makes a mental note to keep a closer eye on the girl next time, see what she’s reading then. She didn’t check anything out today, so Melinda can’t check the register for her name.

The next time she spots the girl in the library, it’s on a day with more customers, so Melinda doesn’t get to pay as close of attention. The young woman spends most of her time working on a laptop, but she does still have a couple of titles about depression on the table nearby. Thankfully, this time there are no lovebirds in the stacks for Melinda to break up. She keeps busy throughout her shift, and the girl leaves without checking anything out again.

The following week, though, she’s back, and this time she’s checking something out.

_How to Keep Going_

This isn’t from the psychology section, but from the self-help section. Still about battling depression.

Melinda scans the girl’s library card, scans the book, then stamps the date in the back inside cover. When the computer spits out a list of the girl’s checkouts, Melinda pauses to scribble something on it before tucking it inside the book and sliding it back across the counter.

That evening, she’s only half-surprised to get a text from an unknown number.

_Hey librarian, you a therapist too?_

Melinda smirks to herself while responding.

_No, but I’m married to one. Otherwise I’m still a concerned adult. Just wanted you to know I’m here if you need a stranger to talk to about anything._

The young woman doesn’t respond that evening, so Melinda is surprised too look up during her shift and find the girl standing on the other side of the library counter. She has her book from the day before in her hands.

“Look I appreciate you taking notice of me, but it’s really not my thing to be singled out by a stranger,” she says, sliding the book back across the counter. “And I don’t really feel like talking to one about my life.”

“You could have put this in the outside book drop, though,” Melinda notes. “The fact that you’re standing here says there’s at least something you wanted to say.”

The woman narrows her eyes. “I’m saying it now. ‘Thanks but no thanks’.”

Melinda doesn’t see her again for several months.

~

She really wasn’t expecting to see her again at all, so when the girl turns up on a Monday evening, Melinda can’t help trying to make eye contact with her. The girl sets up shop at a table with her laptop and doesn’t acknowledge Melinda until that evening when they’re alone in the library again (without any horny teenagers either, as far as Melinda can tell…).

“I don’t have the money to see a therapist,” the young woman eventually says out loud, and Melinda looks up. The girl isn’t facing her, but Melinda is still certain the words are for her to hear.

“I’m a broke working girl who lives in a car,” the girl continues, still facing her computer. “That’s why I’m here a lot. Free wi-fi without having to purchase something.”

Melinda hadn’t speculated about that at all, but now, it made sense.

“I know you said you aren’t a therapist,” the girl says, finally looking over at her, “but would you be willing to just…listen, for a little bit?”

Melinda nods, setting her book down and folding her arms on the desk.

“Absolutely. I’m all ears.”

**Author's Note:**

> oK I have now seen the finale feel free to come gush with me on tumblr about the few bones thrown my way that made my heart so happy <3


End file.
